Sercomtel becomes latest telco to enter Brazil's open video market

Sercomtel is the latest service provider to take advantage of the Brazilian government's new rules that permit telcos to offer video services to their customer base with plans to launch a satellite-based direct-to-home (DTH) service in December.

Initially serving 300,000 customers, the DTH service will be offered in the Brazilian cities of Londrina and Tamarana. Later, Secomtel will extend the DTH service to an additional 29 cities in Parana state.

Residents that sign up for Sercomtel's DTH service will be able to access a number of traditional features including pay-TV channels, HDTV in addition to local content through a partnerships with area free-to-air broadcasters.

In addition to entering the DTH market, Sercomtel hinted that the new service could serve as a blueprint to migrate its MMDS Pay-TV operation in Maringa to satellite.